I have a story about Walter Gretzky. Some of you may know Greg Rusedski, the professional tennis player who played for Britain at Wimbledon and other grand slam events. His mother was a British born citizen of Ukrainian origin. I went to high school in Montreal with his father, Tom (Anatoly) also a fellow Uke. We were in the tennis club where I like to say I taught him everything so he could teach his son. But I digress. Tom told me this story. He and his son went to Brantford to Wayne Gretzky's tennis tournament. When Wayne discovered Tom could speak Ukrainian he was overjoyed. His father, Walter had recently had a stroke and could no longer communicate in English. Walter's first language was Ukrainian, so Tom spent considerable time with him. Wayne was so grateful he gave Tom a special leather jacket which my wife wore on our last visit. Слава Україні. Героям слава. P.S. I'm also an ex-Bell Canada employee.
I no longer idolize Wayne Gretzky. When it mattered 4 years ago, Gretzky remained silent and didn't speak up to defend Canadians freedoms. Yes, he is a beast on the ice, but in real life, he is not worth much.
I understand what you're saying. We are all being tested nowadays, and Wayne (clearly fearing controversy, choosing the path of least resistance) has fallen far short of what it takes to be a genuine man of honor and integrity, and that's being kind! For me, even years back, when Wayne signed on as a spokesman for Pepsi (with its high sugar content, not exactly a healthy thing for kids considering the diabetes risk, killing some and blinding others) Gretzky's star had already been tarnished considerably. Still a great player though, in the top 3 all-time, alongside Bobby Orr and Super-Mario, not necessarily in that order. xxx To be fair, one thing about speaking out, if you're a celebrity like Wayne, you're vulnerable, making yourself an easy target, not only yourself but potentially others in your inner circle, people you love. Mainstream media are jackals, they're adept at character assassination, plus don't fight fair. Add to this the fact that, for the celebrity, trouble often comes out of the blue, chances are you won't see it coming, , very difficult, under those conditions, to court danger, you're already living in a fish bowl as it is! Many people, most people perhaps, can't live like that, it'd destroy them, they'd turn to alcohol and drugs to cope. Even back in his Edmonton Oiler days, Wayne was paranoid and didn't relish being alone in public, he always wanted to be surrounded by team mates everywhere he went. Bobby Orr was like that too in a way. Orr was painfully shy. Orr would hide out in the trainer's room, shying away from the spotlight everywhere, save for on the ice. Yet you can't say Orr wasn't a man of integrity. HE WAS. spending hours in children's wards trying to brighten the existence of kids with cancer and such. Plus, Orr was an absolute lionheart on the ice, never needing an On-Ice Policeman. Orr was the cop, fearlessly coming to the defense of team mates, taking on guys like Pat Quin, with a huge size and weight advantage, and CLEANING THEIR CLOCKS, game in, game out. The bottom line is it's very tough (Although we all do it!) to sit in judgement of a man, unless you've walked a mile in their shoes, OR been in their SKATES! PEACE OUT
